Your View: Food drive works to stamp out hunger

Friday

Apr 29, 2011 at 12:01 AM

Have you ever been hungry?

GERRY PAYETTE

Have you ever been hungry?

I'm not talking about the type of hunger that goes away after you reach for a sandwich or when you eat one of three meals that you have in a course of a day. And, not the type of hunger you experience when you're on a diet trying to lose weight.

No. The type of hunger I'm talking about is the type of hunger that stays with you because you need to ration what you eat because of your financial situation. In this case, these folks need to choose between heating their homes, buying gas to get to work, clothing for their children, buying medicine and paying medical bills, heating their homes and the list goes on, or eating to you heart's content.

Unfortunately, a lot of these folks can't apply for aid because they are over the threshold financially and that makes them unqualified for this aid.

This scenario I've just mentioned isn't about people in foreign lands; although we both know there are plenty of them that need help. I'm mentioning people in our own community, possibly your own neighbors, who are struggling in this economy trying to make ends meet.

To prove my assertions, you just have to look at all the many food pantries that have cropped up over the years; The Shepherd's Pantry in Acushnet; St. Anthony Church Pantry and the M.O.LIFE Pantry both located in New Bedford; and the Damien's Place Pantry located in Wareham. These pantries are where the less fortunate can go to get help.

But in order to supply these needy families with much needed food, the supply train needs to continue on a weekly basis from generous donors from all over.

One of the ways to do this is to participate in local food drives and fundraisers that are in your area from time to time. One such food drive in particular that is coming up May 14 has been sponsored by the Postal Service for the past 18 years called, "Stamp Out Hunger.'

This food drive has netted over 1 billion pounds since its inception. This yearly venture combines the U.S. Postal Service, the National Association of Letter Carriers, the National Rural Letter Carriers Association, the United Way Worldwide and the AFL-CIO's Community Services to name only a few of the participating agencies.

This food drive has got to be the easiest way someone can donate food to the plight of the needy in that you need only put out food on your porch, or by your mailbox, and your letter carrier and their helpers will do the rest.

Last year, nationally, 77.1 million pounds of food were picked up in this manner, making this the nations largest one-day food drive.

I've been a proud member of the Postal Service delivering mail for the past 30 years in North Fairhaven. It truly makes my heart feel good, as well as my fellow letter carriers, to see the generosity of kind people along our routes who leave bags of donated food for us to pick up at this time of year.

I challenge anyone who hasn't donated anything to this food drive to simply put out one or two cans of non-perishable food on that morning and help make this year even better.

Every postal patron will be reminded of this upcoming event with the help of a postcard you'll receive in your mail a few days before courtesy from the Campbell Soup Co.

Campbell Soup is a major corporate sponsor that supplies postcards, magazines and newspaper advertisement promoting this food drive and will also earmark an additional one million pounds of canned food to the drive.

We can do this folks. We can muster our love and caring for the less fortunate and make this 19th year of "Stamp Out Hunger" a huge success.

Remember, we are all in this together.

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